/raid1/www/Hosts/bankrupt/TCRLA_Public/220811.mbx        T R O U B L E D   C O M P A N Y   R E P O R T E R

                 L A T I N   A M E R I C A

          Thursday, August 11, 2022, Vol. 23, No. 154

                           Headlines



A R G E N T I N A

ARGENTINA: Gets $300M IDB Loan to Modernize Solid Waste Management
CAPEX SA: S&P Affirms 'CCC+' Ratings, Outlook Stable


B A R B A D O S

BARBADOS: Gets US$100M IDB Loan for Environmental Sustainability


B E R M U D A

DIGICEL GROUP: Moody's Confirms Caa2 CFR & Alters Outlook to Neg.


B R A Z I L

BRAZIL: Startups Facing Wave of Layoffs due to Investment Cuts


C A Y M A N   I S L A N D S

HAWKEYE RE: Creditors' Proofs of Debt Due Oct. 7


D O M I N I C A N   R E P U B L I C

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: Government Keeps Fuel Prices Frozen


M E X I C O

UNIFIN FINANCIERA: S&P Downgrades ICR to 'D' on Debt Restructuring


T R I N I D A D   A N D   T O B A G O

CARIBBEAN AIRLINES: Tobago Chamber Blasts Company on Airbridge

                           - - - - -


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A R G E N T I N A
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ARGENTINA: Gets $300M IDB Loan to Modernize Solid Waste Management
------------------------------------------------------------------
The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) approved a conditional
line of credit for up to $300 million to improve integrated
municipal solid waste management in Argentina.

As part of the credit line, the IDB authorized an initial $70
million operation, to which the European Investment Bank will add
$50 million and Argentina $17.5 million.

This line of credit and its first operation will fund projects and
equipment to more properly dispose of municipal solid waste and
improve waste valorization and recovery using socially inclusive
strategies.

The financing will help boost the quality of final disposal;
increase municipal solid waste recovery and recycling rates; and
better close, sanitize and reclaim landfills by designing and
building environmental sanitation systems. These systems include
methane capture systems; plans for sorting, transferring,
recovering, and treating municipal solid waste; and basic
infrastructure and equipment for recyclers.

The first operation will directly benefit 910,000 people, or
227,500 four-person households. It aims to improve environmental
and social management of waste by giving waste recovery workers
formal employment, by recovering a greater portion of municipal
solid waste, and by promoting environmental sustainability with a
focus on climate change. The operation's approach will favor
participation by women and people with disabilities.

This operation aligns with Vision 2025 - Reinvest in the Americas:
A Decade of Opportunities, in which the IDB maps out the path to
recovery and inclusive growth in Latin America and the Caribbean.
Of the various pillars of the Vision 2025, this specific program
focuses on digital economy, climate change, and gender and
inclusion.

The IDB's $70 million loan for the first operation has a 25-year
repayment term, a five-and-a-half-year grace period, and an
interest rate based on the SOFR.

                    About Argentina

Argentina is a country located mostly in the southern half of
South America.  Its capital is Buenos Aires. Alberto Angel
Fernandez is the current president of Argentina after winning  
the October 2019 general election. He succeeded Mauricio  
Macri in the position.

Argentina has the third largest economy in Latin America.  The
country's economy is an upper middle-income economy for fiscal
year 2019, according to the World Bank. Historically, however,  
its economic performance has been very uneven, with high economic
growth alternating with severe recessions, income maldistribution
and in the recent decades, increasing poverty.

Last March 25, 2022, Argentina finalized agreement with the IMF
for a new USD44 billion Extended Funding Facility (EFF) intended
to fund USD40 billion in looming repayments of the defunct
Stand-By Arrangement (SBA), with an extra USD4 billion in up-front
net financing. This has averted the risk of a default to the IMF
and is facilitating a parallel rescheduling of Paris  Club debt.

As reported by The Troubled Company Reporter - Latin America on
July 19, 2022, Fitch Ratings placed Argentina's Long-Term Foreign
Currency Issuer Default Rating (IDR) and Long-Term Local Currency
IDR Under Criteria Observation (UCO) following the conversion of
the agency's Exposure Draft: Sovereign Rating Criteria to final
criteria. The UCO assignment indicates that ratings may change as
a direct result of the final criteria. It does not indicate a
change in the underlying credit profile, nor does it affect
existing Rating Outlooks.

Last April 14, 2022, Fitch Ratings affirmed Argentina's Long-Term
Foreign and Local Currency Issuer Default Ratings (IDR) at 'CCC'.
Fitch said Argentina's 'CCC' ratings reflect weak external
liquidity and pronounced macroeconomic imbalances that undermine
debt repayment capacity, and uncertainty regarding how much
progress can be made on these issues under a new IMF program.

Fitch added that it is uncertain whether the EFF will be a strong
anchor for macroeconomic stabilization. Its policy requirements
are fairly unambitious relative to other IMF programs and in
light of the economy's deep imbalances, but it faces heightened  
risk nonetheless from weak political support and  spill-overs
from the Russia-Ukraine war, says Fitch.

Standard & Poor's credit rating for Argentina stands at CCC+ with
stable outlook, which was a rating upgrade issued on Sept. 8,
2020. Moody's credit rating for Argentina was last set at Ca on
Sept. 28, 2020.

DBRS has also confirmed Argentina's Long-Term Foreign Currency
Issuer Rating at CCC and Long-Term Local Currency Issuer Rating at
CCC (high) on July 21, 2022.


CAPEX SA: S&P Affirms 'CCC+' Ratings, Outlook Stable
----------------------------------------------------
On Aug. 9, 2022, S&P Global Ratings affirmed the 'CCC+' ratings on
Argentina-based oil and gas, and integrated electricity generator
CAPEX S.A., because they continue to be capped by its 'CCC+'
transfer and convertibility assessment (T&C) of Argentina. S&P also
kept the company's 'b-' stand-alone credit profile (SACP)
unchanged.

The stable outlook on CAPEX mirrors that on the sovereign.

S&P said, "Our 'CCC+' rating on CAPEX mainly reflects that its
operations are located in Argentina, exposing the company to
worsening business conditions and exchange rates, rising interest
rates, and some restrictions on accessing and/or transferring funds
from abroad. These factors could compromise the company's ability
to service its foreign currency financial obligations. On Sept. 15,
2020, Argentina's central bank tightened regulations on accessing
foreign exchange (FX) to protect the country's international
reserves. This regulation is in force through December 2022.
Although the regulation doesn't currently apply to CAPEX given that
its bullet bond is due in 2024, the company is exposed to currency
fluctuations, and it's uncertain whether the government could
extend FX restrictions, which we believe could erode business
conditions in the next 12 to 24 months.

"CAPEX's credit metrics in 2022 are stronger than our previous
expectations, mainly due to the 62% rise in oil prices during the
fiscal year, and to a lesser extent, the company's record-high
energy generation. For fiscal 2023, we continue to expect a strong
EBITDA generation, ranging from $175 million to $195 million, of
which close to 80% will come from the O&G division. Our estimates
incorporate a Brent price of $100 for 2022 and $85 for 2023, as
well as CAPEX's approximately 15% higher volumes amid the
increasing capacity at its exploitation concessions. We expect the
energy generation business to represent slightly less than 15% of
EBITDA this fiscal year, approaching $25 million. We incorporate
the 30% and 10% ad-hoc electricity rate hike from February and July
2022--although much lower than our expectation for the 2022 and
2023 average inflation of 62% and 59%, respectively--imposed by the
Resolution 238/2022. We don't incorporate any additional rate
adjustments going forward, given their discretionary nature.

"Therefore, we expect debt to EBITDA to approach 2.0x for fiscal
2023 and an aggressive free operating cash flow (FOCF) to debt
metric (below 10%) as the company allocates a big portion of EBITDA
to capital expenditures to expand oil exploration and production.
Additionally, we incorporate in our analysis the volatility in
CAPEX's financial metrics, given the currently difficult business
and economic conditions, and the susceptibility to fluctuating O&G
prices.

"We view CAPEX's refinancing risks as increasing because the $300
million bullet bond (representing 98% of total debt) comes due in
less than two years. At its maturity, we don't believe that CAPEX
will have sufficient cash flows to repay the debt. In such a
scenario, there's high uncertainty about Argentine companies'
ability to access the capital markets for a dollar-denominated bond
refinancing."

ESG credit indicators: E-4, S-4, G-3

S&P said, "Environmental factors are a negative consideration in
our credit rating analysis of CAPEX. The company is more exposed to
O&G (70% of EBITDA) and less so to energy generation (30%). In
addition to the exposure to energy-transition risks typical to the
O&G industry, we also view social factors as a negative
consideration in our analysis of CAPEX. This stems from the
unpredictability of Argentina's regulatory framework that seeks
affordability of energy for consumers, in detriment to the entity's
profitability. For example, we have observed the company's exposure
to volatile macroeconomic variables, and absence of full
pass-through costs to the electricity rates. Governance factors are
a moderately negative consideration, which relate primarily to
country risk factors, rather than to entity-specific concerns."




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B A R B A D O S
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BARBADOS: Gets US$100M IDB Loan for Environmental Sustainability
----------------------------------------------------------------
Barbados will promote environmental sustainability and economic
development with a US$100 million guarantee approved by the
Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) that will allow the country
to create a long-term instrument to finance measures related to
sustainability and marine conservation.

Barbados occupies an area of 432km2, with 92 kilometers of
coastline. The Government has set an aspirational target of 30% of
Barbados to be dedicated to conservation as a Marine Managed Area
(MMA).

The IDB guarantee will help reduce borrowing costs for the country
as it seeks to raise funds for conservation activities, which
includes the creation of a conservation trust fund, known as the
Barbados Environmental Sustainability Fund. The operation, which is
structured as a policy-based guarantee, will also support reforms
to improve environmental governance and sustainable debt management
in Barbados. In addition, it will support capacity-building in
project execution within the responsible Ministry of Finance,
Economic Affairs and Investment (MFEI). The beneficiaries of this
project will be the citizens in Barbados who will enjoy the
environmental and economic benefits of new protected areas and an
enhanced natural capital.

This operation marks an important milestone for the IDB in helping
its member countries to leverage innovative financial solutions to
address biodiversity and climate change, which are priority issues
of its Vision 2025 strategy. The project is the first where the IDB
employs a guarantee to help a country create a long-term financing
framework to use sustainable bonds for conservation measures.

The $100 million IDB guarantee has a maximum duration of 20 years.





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B E R M U D A
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DIGICEL GROUP: Moody's Confirms Caa2 CFR & Alters Outlook to Neg.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Moody's Investors Service has confirmed Digicel Group Holdings
Limited ("Digicel")'s Caa2 corporate family rating, its Caa2-PD
probability of default rating and Ca senior unsecured ratings.
Moody's also confirmed the senior unsecured ratings of Digicel
Group Two Limited, Digicel Limited and the senior secured ratings
of Digicel International Finance Limited. Concurrently, Moody's
downgraded the senior unsecured and subordinated ratings of Digicel
International Finance Limited to Caa3 from Caa2.

The outlook was changed to negative. This rating action concludes
the review for upgrade initiated on October 27, 2021.

The confirmation reflects that despite the debt reduction with
proceeds from the sale of Digicel Pacific Limited (DPL), the
refinancing risk associated to Digicel Limited's $925 million
senior unsecured notes due in March 2023 persists, increasing
default risk.

The downgrade of the senior unsecured and subordinated ratings of
Digicel International Finance Limited to Caa3 from Caa2 reflects
the company's business profile and capital structure after the sale
of DPL including the associated debt repayment, and the increasing
risk of a restructuring and a higher expected loss for these
instruments.

Following the sale of Digicel Pacific Limited, the company used net
proceeds to repay its $1,048 million 10.0% Senior Secured Cash
Pay/PIK Notes due 2024. The ranking of the remaining instruments
did not change and in its waterfall, Moody's rank Digicel's debt
instruments as follows: Digicel International Finance Limited
(DIFL) senior secured debt due 2024 (term loan and senior secured
notes), DIFL senior unsecured notes due 2025, DIFL subordinated
notes due 2026, DL senior unsecured notes due 2023, Digicel senior
unsecured notes due 2025 and Digicel perpetual convertible notes.

The negative outlook reflects the uncertainty over the company's
ability to address its near term debt maturities amid the company's
limited financial flexibility, rising interest rates and tight
market conditions increasing the risk of a restructure or
distressed exchange.

Governance considerations are material to the rating action. The
company's G-5 score reflects its aggressive financial policy with a
history of a couple of distressed exchanges in the last couple of
years.

Confirmations:

Issuer: Digicel Group Holdings Limited

Corporate Family Rating, Confirmed at Caa2

Probability of Default Rating, Confirmed at Caa2-PD

Senior Unsecured Regular Bond/Debenture, Confirmed at Ca

Issuer: Digicel Group Two Limited

Senior Unsecured Regular Bond/Debenture, Confirmed at C

Issuer: Digicel International Finance Limited

Senior Secured 1st Lien Term Loan B, Confirmed at Caa1

Senior Secured Regular Bond/Debenture, Confirmed at Caa1

Issuer: Digicel Limited

Senior Unsecured Regular Bond/Debenture, Confirmed at Caa3

Downgrades:

Issuer: Digicel International Finance Limited

Subordinate Regular Bond/Debenture, Downgrade to Caa3 From Caa2

Senior Unsecured Regular Bond/Debenture, Downgrade to Caa3 From
Caa2

Withdrawals:

Issuer: Digicel Group Holdings Limited

Senior Secured Regular Bond/Debenture, previously rated Caa3

Outlook Actions:

Issuer: Digicel Group Holdings Limited

Outlook, Changed To Negative From Rating Under Review

Issuer: Digicel Group Two Limited

Outlook, Changed To Negative From Rating Under Review

Issuer: Digicel International Finance Limited

Outlook, Changed To Negative From Rating Under Review

Issuer: Digicel Limited

Outlook, Changed To Negative From Rating Under Review

RATINGS RATIONALE

Following the sale of Digicel Pacific Limited to Telstra
Corporation Limited (Telstra, A2 stable) for a total amount of
$1.85 billion, the company will use the net proceeds, around $1.4
billion, to reduce debt. While debt reduction is important, the
positive effect on Moody's-adjusted leverage will be small with pro
forma leverage at 6.1x as of March 2022, as per the company's
estimates, because Digicel Pacific Limited contributed around 25%
of the company's EBITDA and almost no net debt.

Following the company's distressed exchanges in 2020 Digicel
reduced gross debt by close to $1.6 billion or 24%. Moody's views
these debt exchanges as distressed exchanges, which is a default
under its definition. The company managed to improve liquidity due
to its lower debt service burden, which enabled it to generate
slightly positive FCF. Going forward, and given current market
conditions and higher interests rates, cash flow is likely to
decline on higher coupon payments.

Digicel liquidity is weak given the upcoming maturity of its $925
million senior unsecured notes due in March 2023, coupled with
interest expenses and investments in the next 12 months that exceed
the company's sources of liquidity, namely its cash balance that as
of March 2022 was $416 million and the additional $300 million from
the proceeds of the sale of DPL. The cash balance is  also
supported by the $187 million payment Digicel received in
connection with an award of damages following a legal proceeding
with Orange (Baa1 stable). Orange appealed this decision and, while
the companies expect a final resolution, Digicel intends to keep
this amount in cash recorded as a provision. Digicel does not have
access to revolving credit facilities.

FACTORS THAT COULD LEAD TO AN UPGRADE OR DOWNGRADE OF THE RATINGS

A downgrade of Digicel's ratings could happen in case the company
fails to refinance its senior unsecured notes due 2023 resulting in
a debt restructuring with higher than expected losses to
creditors.

An upgrade of Digicel's ratings would require an improvement in the
company's liquidity profile including the successful refinancing of
its 2023 maturities and improvement of its financial flexibility
that is currently limited by the lack of access to revolving credit
facilities, the fact that most of its assets are encumbered and the
little cushion under the covenants. Additionally, an improvement in
its operating performance and maintenance of positive free cash
flow generation would put positive pressure on the ratings.

Incorporated in Hamilton, Bermuda, Digicel is the largest provider
of wireless telecommunication services in the Caribbean. Following
the sale of DPL assets and the exit of Panama, the company operates
in 25 markets in the Caribbean. Digicel provides a comprehensive
range of business solutions, cable TV and broadband, and other
related products and services. Digicel generated revenue of $2.3
billion for the last twelve months ended March 2022. Proforma for
the sale of DPL, Digicel's revenues and EBITDA margin as reported
by the company would be $1.8 billion and 43% respectively.

The principal methodology used in these ratings was
Telecommunications Service Providers published in January 2017.



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B R A Z I L
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BRAZIL: Startups Facing Wave of Layoffs due to Investment Cuts
--------------------------------------------------------------
Alba Santandreu at EFE News reports that Brazil, the mecca for
emerging companies in Latin America, is facing a wave of layoffs
and resignations among its startups amid a worldwide investment
"crisis" due to global uncertainties and an environment of
progressively more restrictive monetary policies.

Brazil, the country with the most so-called "unicorns" in the
region, is experiencing a "period of correction" after the boom of
the past five years, especially during the coronavirus pandemic,
when interest in emerging technology firms skyrocketed, according
to EFE News.

Nevertheless, the appetite among investors has waned in recent
months as interest rates have increased in the world's main
economies to try and put the brakes on rising inflation, the report
notes.

                       About Brazil

Brazil is the fifth largest country in the world and third largest
in the Americas.  Jair Bolsonaro is the current president, having
been sworn in on Jan. 1, 2019.

As reported in the Troubled Company Reporter-Latin America on
July 18, 2022, Fitch Ratings has affirmed Brazil's Long-Term
Foreign Currency Issuer Default Rating at 'BB-' and revised the
Rating Outlook to Stable from Negative.

On June 17, 2022, S&P Global Ratings affirmed its 'BB-/B' long-
and short-term foreign and local currency sovereign credit
ratings on Brazil.

Moody's Investors Service also affirmed on April 15, 2022,
Brazil's long-term Ba2 issuer ratings and senior unsecured bond
ratings, (P)Ba2 senior unsecured shelf ratings, and maintained the
stable outlook.





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C A Y M A N   I S L A N D S
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HAWKEYE RE: Creditors' Proofs of Debt Due Oct. 7
------------------------------------------------
The creditors of Hawkeye Re, SPC are required to file their proofs
of debt by Oct. 7, 2022, to be included in the company's dividend
distribution.

The company, which is under liquidation, intends to declare a final
dividend.

The company's liquidator is:

         Russel Homer
         e-mail: ta@cjaycayman.com
         Chris Johnson Assocaites Limited
         80 Shedden Road, Grand Cayman Islands
         Cayman Islands KY1-1004




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D O M I N I C A N   R E P U B L I C
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DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: Government Keeps Fuel Prices Frozen
-------------------------------------------------------
Dominican Today reports that for the week from August 6 to 12,
2022, the Ministry of Industry, Commerce, and MiPymes provides that
fuels will be marketed at the following prices:

  -- Premium Gasoline will be sold at RD$293.60 per gallon,
     maintaining its price.
  -- Regular Gasoline RD$274.50 per gallon maintains its price.
  -- Regular Gasoil RD$221.60 per gallon maintains its price.
  -- Gasoil Optimo RD$241.10 per gallon maintains its price.
  -- Avtur RD$298.91 per gallon maintains its price.
  -- Kerosene RD$338.10 per gallon maintains its price.
  -- Fuel Oil #6 RD$192.11 per gallon maintains its price.
  -- Fuel Oil 1%S RD$211.77 per gallon maintains its price.
  -- Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) RD$147.60 per gallon maintains
    its price.
  -- Natural Gas RD$28.97 per m3 maintains its price.
  -- The average weekly exchange rate is RD$54.55 from the Central

     Bank's daily publications.

                    About Dominican Republic

The Dominican Republic is a Caribbean nation that shares the island
of Hispaniola with Haiti to the west. Capital city Santo Domingo
has Spanish landmarks like the Gothic Catedral Primada de America
dating back 5 centuries in its Zona Colonial district. Luis Rodolfo
Abinader Corona is the current president of the nation.

TCRLA reported in April 2019 that the Dominican Today related that
Juan Del Rosario of the UASD Economic Faculty cited a current
economic slowdown for the Dominican Republic and cautioned that if
the trend continues, growth would reach only 4% by 2023. Mr. Del
Rosario said that if that happens, "we'll face difficulties in
meeting international commitments."

An ongoing concern in the Dominican Republic is the inability of
participants in the electricity sector to establish financial
viability for the system.

Fitch Ratings, in December 2021, revised the Outlook on Dominican
Republic's Long-Term Foreign-Currency Issuer Default Rating (IDR)
to Stable from Negative and affirmed the IDRs at 'BB-'.  The
revision of the Outlook to Stable reflects the narrowing of
Dominican Republic's government deficit and financing needs since
Fitch's last review resulting in the stabilization of the
government debt/GDP ratio, as well as the investment-driven
economic momentum, reflected in the faster-than-expected economic
recovery in 2021 that Fitch expects to carry into above-potential
GDP growth during 2022 and 2023.

Standard & Poor's, also in December 2021, revised its outlook on
the Dominican Republic to stable from negative.  S&P also affirmed
its 'BB-' long-term foreign and local currency sovereign credit
ratings and its 'B' short-term sovereign credit ratings.  The
stable outlook reflects S&P's expectation of continued favorable
GDP growth and policy continuity over the next 12 to 18 months that
will likely stabilize the government's debt burden, despite lack of
progress with broader tax reforms, S&P said.  A rapid economic
recovery from the downturn because of the pandemic should mitigate
external and fiscal risks.

Moody's affirmed the Dominican Republic's long-term issuer and
senior unsecured ratings at Ba3 and maintained the stable outlook
in March 2021.




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M E X I C O
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UNIFIN FINANCIERA: S&P Downgrades ICR to 'D' on Debt Restructuring
------------------------------------------------------------------
On Aug. 9, 2022, S&P Global Ratings lowered its issuer credit
rating on Unifin Financiera S.A.B. de C.V. to 'D' from 'B+'. S&P
also cuts its issue-level ratings on the lender's senior unsecured
debt to 'D' from 'B+' and on its hybrid perpetual notes to 'D' from
'CCC+'.

On Aug. 8, Mexico-based nonbank financial institution (NBFI),
Unifin, announced that it won't make interest and principal
payments on all its debt--except on its non-recourse private
securitizations--until it reached a general and orderly
restructuring agreement with its creditors.

The default follows Unifin's announcement that it won't pay its
financial obligations as they come due. Unifin, like other Mexican
independent NBFIs, is confronting a deteriorating global
macroeconomic outlook amid tightening financing conditions and
market volatility. Consequently, the lender has made efforts to
strengthen its financial position and reduce its refinancing risk
for the next 12 months. In this sense, Unifin extended its bond
maturity from 2022 to 2024, secured a credit facility for $500
million, while negotiating with development banks for a partially
secured issuance program. Nevertheless, Unifin opted not to honor
its financial obligations beginning on Aug. 8, 2022.

S&P said, "We believe this action to be a general default because
Unifin won't pay any kind of principal or interest payments,
including interest payments due this week and we do not expect
these coupons to then be paid within the applicable grace periods.
Moreover, Unifin doesn't expect to repay its other debt until it
reaches a restructuring agreement. Following the announcement, we
are downgrading all ratings on Unifin and its debt to 'D'. Although
Unifin has announced its intention to carry out the restructurings
on all of its debt at this stage, and has not completed the
restructurings yet, it has also announced that it will not make any
coupon or principal payments on all of its debt in the meantime.
Based on these announcements, we do not expect Unifin to make any
payments on its until it has restructured their terms, even though
this will mean that it will not pay coupons as they come due. We
therefore expect the default to be general and cover all Unifin's
financial obligations.

"Prior to this decision, in our opinion, Unifin had enough
financial resources to meet all its liabilities for the next 12
months. Unifin had no major debt maturities in that timeframe. In
addition, it still had about 25% of its credit funding lines
available and its unencumbered assets covered almost 2.2x its
unsecured debt, providing financial flexibility. However, the board
of directors and management decided on prioritizing the entity's
long-term business continuity and its stabilization by
restructuring debt to achieve better operating conditions."




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T R I N I D A D   A N D   T O B A G O
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CARIBBEAN AIRLINES: Tobago Chamber Blasts Company on Airbridge
--------------------------------------------------------------
Trinidad Express reports that Chairman of the Tobago Business
Chamber Martin George has called on Caribbean Airlines Ltd (CAL) to
withdraw a news release it issued, which he said appeared to place
blame on the domestic airbridge for the airline's economic woes and
failures over the years and make an excuse for not increasing
flights between Trinidad and Tobago.

                   'Benefit of the doubt'

"If that is the case, and I hope it is not, I am willing to give
Caribbean Airlines the benefit of the doubt to clarify that point .
. . then I take very strong umbrage to that, not just as the
chairman of the Tobago Business Chamber, but also as a citizen of
Trinidad and Tobago, because we all know that this airline, since
it was born, has been characterised by losses," George said in a
statement, according to Trinidad Express.

CAL said in the release that its domestic operation was
characterised by consistent losses (US$9,613,100 as at June 2022)
and other critical variables such as subsidised flights, high
operating costs, low prices which do not reflect actual market
value and one-way peak demand periods outside of the July-August
school holiday period, the report notes.

The airline said as at June 2022, it's total operational costs for
the airbridge stood at US$18,777,648, while the cost per flight
hour was US$17,306, the report discloses.

It noted that the high costs were driven by the frequency of
flights and the short distance (52 miles) leading to an undesirable
low block hour utilisation of aircraft and crews and maintenance
costs, the report says.

                   Considerable Constraints

"Caribbean Airlines is mindful of the need to have an effective
airbridge between Trinidad and Tobago and the company continues to
closely manage same, bearing in mind the considerable constraints
outlined above," the airline went on, the report says.

But George asserted that CAL's financial woes had "nothing to do
with the domestic airbridge," the report discloses.

"And it is not fair to Tobagonians or Trinbagonians in general to
seek to place the blame (on the airbridge) for it," he pointed out,
the report notes.

"We have seen in the past the catastrophic disasters and failures
of failed investments, failed ventures by Caribbean Airlines in all
sorts of flights of fancy and other expensive financial foreways,
which have only ended to their detriment," he said, the report
relays.

"So please do not even think of it. And I call upon them to clarify
this position, or withdraw that statement, where they seek to place
blame and castigate the domestic airbridge as being characterised
by consistent losses, as if to say that's the reason why you cannot
put on more flights. It's appalling, and it's debasing to
Tobagonians for them to take that position," he said, the report
notes.

                   Constitutional Right

Speaking in his capacity as an attorney-at-law, George went on:
"You are speaking about something that is a basic fundamental human
right.  It is part of our constitutional right in the sense of
freedom of movement.  If it is that you do not have sufficient
access to transportation, either by ferry or by plane between
Trinidad and Tobago, then your movement is curtailed, your movement
is restricted.  And I'm not just speaking for persons who may be
coming up from Trinidad for vacation, or to relax in Tobago. I'm
speaking about Tobagonians who need the essential service on the
airbridge.

"You may have to go down for a medical appointment. You may have to
go down for surgery, you may have to go down for an interview, you
may have to go down for business because there are many official
Government transactions that can't be done in Tobago. So please do
not insult the intelligence of the population of Trinidad and
Tobago with this puerile, pathetic statement that you put out
here."

George stressed that there was a tremendous need for more flights
on the air bridge, the report says.

He said the Tobago Business Chamber, as well as the THA, was
willing to work with CAL to increase flights on the domestic
airbrige, the report discloses.

THA Chief Secretary Farley Augustine recently indicated that the
THA was willing to foot the $5.6 million per year required to keep
the ANR Robinson Airport open until 2 a.m, to facilitate increased
flights to Tobago, the report relays.

"In fact, cost cannot be the issue anymore because Mr Farley
Augustine is on record as saying that the THA will foot the bill .
. . so please CAL, we do not accept and we utterly reject this
attempt on your part to seek to cast aspersions and to deflect from
the issues," George said, the report says.

He added: "We call upon the Prime Minister as the leader of the
country, the leader of the Cabinet, the leader of the Government,
we call upon him in his capacity as a Tobagonians also, please do
not ignore the plight of your fellow Tobagonians and Trinidadians
who are stranded at the airport. Sometimes can't get a booking for
a flight. We need more flights on the domestic route, plain and
simple. There's no other way to put it and there is no way to
sugarcoat it or to get around it.

"We've seen CAL try to engage in things which I think are at best
questionable. They want to speak about having a Tobago to Barbados
route, they want to speak about having a Tobago to New York route
and you cannot even fully service the Tobago to Trinidad route?
Come on, CAL, I think you ought to do much better than this," the
report adds.


                  About Caribbean Airlines

Caribbean Airlines Limited - http://www.caribbean-airlines.com/-  
provides passenger airline services in the Caribbean, South
America, and North America.  The company also offers freighter
services for perishables, fish and seafood, live animals, human
remains, and dangerous goods.  In addition, it operates a duty
free
store in Trinidad.  Caribbean Airlines Limited was founded in 2006
and is based in Piarco, Trinidad and Tobago.

Caribbean Airlines is among many airlines whose business has been
greatly affected in 2020 by the slowdown of international travel
caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.  The government of Trinidad &
Tobago guaranteed a US$65 million loan for the airline, and that
funding has helped with the airlines' cash flow shortfall since
May
2020.  In September 2020, the airline related it will be taking
cost-cutting measures to help keep it afloat.  The measures, which
was to affect some 1,700 employees, included salary deductions,
no-pay leaves and lay-offs.


                           *********


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